


Tea

by sansiva1203



Series: Zutara Week 2018 [3]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Fluff, Modern Era, Starbucks, Zutara Week, Zutara Week 2018
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-01
Updated: 2018-08-01
Packaged: 2019-06-19 22:09:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 919
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15519672
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sansiva1203/pseuds/sansiva1203
Summary: Zuko spends nearly all day every day working at Starbucks. One day, Katara comes in and orders something that shouldn't even count as tea. They meet completely by chance twice, but that's all they need.





	Tea

**Author's Note:**

> written for day 3 of zutara week 2018, based on prompts on tumblr. set in a modern alternate universe. unbetaed, but i am looking for someone to read my future zutara, so please hit me up in the comments for either any of my grammar mistakes or to be my beta.

“...Um, a chai tea latte with just water and a pump for Ka- Katara?” Zuko called out, confused. It was a pretty slow day at his friendly neighbourhood Starbucks, and he wasn’t working the register, so he didn’t know who had wanted such a horrendous drink, one that would definitely taste like yesterday’s tea grounds, but who was he to judge?

A tall and lanky girl stepped up from behind the monstrous display of specialty cups and travel mugs to claim her drink.

“Thanks,” she said unexpectedly. Zuko gaped at the girl in front of him. (He didn’t know how to talk to pretty people.) 

“For saying my name right.” she added after a moment of awkward silence. Zuko barely managed a jerky nod before she swiftly grabbed her cup with long, dark fingers and took a sip.

“Mmm,” she nearly moaned out the sound of pleasure at something Zuko thought would taste worse than dog poop. Without another glance at Zuko, Katara walked right out of the Starbucks, using her hip to push the door open. Zuko caught the subtle movement with widened eyes, and it took him a solid ten minutes to stop staring at the spot where the beautiful girl had stood before she left.

 

****

 

Zuko laid awake that night in his bed, legs crossed at the ankle and his right arm tucked behind his head. He stared up at his boring, ordinary ceiling, and his thoughts were consumed by the girl who was neither boring nor ordinary.  _ Katara, _ he thought.  _ What a beautiful name. Matches her eyes. _

And with Katara’s image seared into his brain, Zuko fell asleep thinking about someone who would keep him awake time and again.

 

****

 

Zuko didn’t see Katara for another few weeks after that first visit. Eventually, his memory of her started to fade and he thought about her less and less, until one day she pulled open the door to the cafe, inhaled deeply, and let the door close behind her as she exhales softly with a smile dancing on her lips.

Katara’s simple expression stunned Zuko once again, and he sent a silent thank-you to Agni that the store was empty and he was the only one working that night. It was one in the morning, after all.

Zuko, in an effort to be cool, raised his right eyebrow at Katara, and pretended to barely recognize her, when in fact she haunted his dreams for days on end.

“Gross tea water, amirite?” With a lazy grin that oozed confidence, Zuko began making her drink without a response.

“Yeah, how’d you know?” Katara asked, bewildered.

“You came in a couple of weeks ago,” Zuko replied, not taking his eyes off her cup, scared that if she looked into them, she’d figure everything out in a heartbeat.

In another few moments with only the gentle whir of the machines in the background to keep them company, Zuko handed Katara a steaming plastic cup, and waved his hand away at her outstretched hand with crumpled bills.

“On the house,” Zuko confirmed, “for having to put up with that god-awful concoction of yours.”

He hoped the gentle teasing wouldn’t scare her away, but something about this girl tipped him off to the fact that she enjoyed a little flirty banter.

“Oh, right, like a Caramel Frappuccino wouldn’t give me sugar rush and diabetes before I’m twenty-five!” Katara was ready for this. “Fight me,” she muttered under her breath, worked up in mere moments, until she saw Zuko laughing behind his hand.

“Oh shut up!” she laughed right back at the simple hilarity of their situation, and she invited him to come sit with her at one of the tables.

“It’s not like it’s rush hour or anything, just keep me company before I go outside and try not to get mugged.” Zuko finally relented, and they ended up talking and laughing until Zuko’s shift ended at 4am. His coworker, a bright and bubbly girl named Ty Lee, arrived at four on the dot, and as Zuko offered to walk Katara home, she caught his eye and winked. He did not wink back.

As Zuko and Katara walked the few minutes it would take back to her apartment, they somehow ended up linking their hands together. They threw their heads back in fits of laughter as the night caught up with them, and as they walked up to her room door, Zuko stopped them both.

“Katara,” he said, somewhat solemnly, killing the light mood. “I have something to tell you.”

Katara was prepared for the worst; he had cancer, or worse, a girlfriend.

Bracing herself for the goodbye, Katara looked up into Zuko’s gold-flecked eyes, and felt a tingling sensation as he placed a hand on her waist.

“I think I have a crush on you.” Zuko revealed, and Katara almost pushed him away for that unnecessary dramatic build up. She was this close to it too, already placing her hands on his chest when he leaned in and pressed his chapped lips to her smooth ones. 

Zuko pulled away after a moment, not wanting to overstep any boundaries, but Katara wrapped an arm around his broad shoulders and pulled him right back down to meet her. 

They stood there for god knows how long making out gently and lovingly until Katara finally forced herself to let go and rummage in her bag for her keys.

“Wanna come in?” she asks breathlessly, and Zuko smiles, nods, and enters into his future wife’s apartment.

**Author's Note:**

> thank you so much for reading! every view, kudos, and comment truly makes my day and means so much for me, so if you think the fic is deserving, leave kudos and comments please!
> 
> come yell at me on tumblr: find me at veridian-nougat
> 
> also, did you catch that sly harry potter reference? lemme know in the comments!


End file.
